We love hearing from you, go to Facebook and ‘Like’ the Express-news page. FREE
ESTABLISHED 1991
WEDNESDAY 2426 SEPTEMBER 2014
WWW.EXPRESSNEWS.CO.ZA
Calf causes a stir Born with ‘human’ head, deformed organs
} Tladi Moloi BERGVILLE. – A calf, born with what looks like a human head and tongue, has caused a stir in the rural area of Bergville, Emazizini, in the south of Qwaqwa. Besides the features that locals say resemble those of a human being, upon closer inspection, the calf also had both male and female reproductive organs. Sebenzile Mlangeni, who owns the cow that produced the deformed calf, says after the cow struggled to calve for a long time on Sunday, she decided to help it along and was shocked by what she saw. The 60-year-old says after helping the cow to calve, she noticed there was something seriously amiss when the children who were helping her ran away screaming. “I could not immediately identify this ‘creature’ and I called some men who were around in the neighbourhood to come and see the calf,” she says. Locals started rumours that maybe a human being had “fathered” the calf given its human-like features, but Mlangeni immediately dismisses this as nonsense. “Who could have slept with the cow, I don’t even believe in witchcraft,” she says matter-of-factly. She says although she cannot explain the mystery, she
STRANGE: Sebenzile Mlangeni of Bergville with a calf born with what looks like a human head.
A calf born with what looks like a human head. believes it is just one of those things that happen in nature. “God just gave this ‘thing’ which I don’t know what to call. It shocked me very much that is why I called people to come and witness it,” she says. Tau Madonsele, the herdsman Mlangeni hired to look after her cows, says he is just as shocked and adds that he did not even let the cows stay in the veld and graze for too long before bringing them back to the kraal. “He always lets them graze for a few hours before bringing them back to the kraal,” Mlangeni confirms.
Photos: Tladi Moloi
Sadly the calf lived for a short time and after initially keeping the carcass in her house, Mlangeni has now buried it. Mlangeni owns nine cows and she says two of them are currently in calf. She says she is not afraid that those cows will give birth to deformed calves like the one they have witnessed. “We’ll wait and see. As for now we can’t predict what will happen,” she says. Mlangeni lives in the village with five of her eight children. Dr Angus Campbell, a veterinary surgeon at the
Maluti Veterinary Clinic in Bethlehem, says it sometimes happens that deformed calves are born, but it is very rare. “This is a genetic abnormality. It is a condition called hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is seen sporadically in large animals. It is relatively common
in calves, where inheritance and vitamin A deficiency have been implicated. Such calves are sometimes stillborn,” he explains. He says there is no possibility that this could be the result of bestiality (sexual activity between humans and animals).